JP3181428U - Touch electrode device - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a touch electrode device in which a touch electrode pattern is formed of a non-transparent conductive material, or exposure and development are directly performed to simplify a manufacturing process.
A photosensitive material (for example, acrylic) is used for the electrode layer 22 to form an electrode array having an electrode shape required in manufacturing processes of exposure and development. For example, the appearance of each electrode in the electrode array has a rhombus pattern appearance. However, the appearance of the electrode shape is not limited to this, and it may be designed and formed to have a linear pattern or other polygonal pattern according to actual requirements. Compared with the manufacturing process of the electrode layer formed with the conventional indium tin oxide (ITO), the electrode layer 22 performs the manufacturing process of exposure and image development directly, simplifies a manufacturing process, and reduces cost.
[Selection] Figure 2B

Description

  The present invention relates to a touch electrode device having a touch electrode pattern formed of a non-transparent conductive material.

  A touch screen is an input / output device formed by combining sensing technology and display technology, and is widely used in portable and handheld electronic devices.

  A capacitive touch panel is a type of touch panel that is widely used, and detects a touch position by a capacitive coupling action. When the finger touches the surface of the capacitive touch panel, the capacitance at the corresponding position changes, thereby detecting the touch position.

  1A is a plan view of a conventional touch panel, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along a cross-sectional line 1B-1B ′ in FIG. 1A. The first electrode 12 is formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10, and the second electrode 14 is formed on the lower surface of the substrate 10. The first electrode 12 and the second electrode 14 are substantially orthogonal to each other.

  However, a transparent conductive material such as indium tin oxide (ITO) is generally used for the first electrode 12 and the second electrode 14 of the conventional touch panel described above. In addition to the complicated manufacturing process for forming indium tin oxide, when the indium tin oxide material is bent, it is cut and no longer conductive, and thus a flexible touch panel cannot be manufactured.

  The manufacturing process of the conventional touch panel is complicated, or it is difficult to manufacture a flexible touch panel. Therefore, the present inventor considers that the above-mentioned defects can be improved, and as a result of intensive studies, a rational design is achieved. Thus, the present inventors have arrived at a proposal of the present invention that effectively improves the above problems.

  The present invention has been made in view of such conventional problems. In order to solve the above problems, the present invention aims to simplify the manufacturing process or to provide a method for manufacturing a flexible touch panel.

  Therefore, the touch electrode device of the present invention simplifies the manufacturing process by forming a touch electrode pattern with a non-transparent conductive material, or directly performing exposure and development.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, a touch electrode device according to the present invention includes a substrate and at least one electrode layer provided on a surface of the substrate and including a non-transparent conductive material. And

It is a top view of the conventional touch panel. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along a cross-sectional line 1B-1B ′ of FIG. 1A. 1 is a plan view of a touch electrode device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing which follows sectional line 2-2 'of FIG. 2A. It is the elements on larger scale of the electrode layer of FIG. 2A. It is the electrode row | line | column formed by the manufacturing process of exposure and image development. It is the cross-sectional structure of the other touch electrode apparatus changed. It is a top view of the touch electrode device by other embodiments concerning the present invention. FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along the section line 3-3 ′ of FIG. 3A. It is a top view of the touch electrode device of other embodiments concerning the present invention. FIG. 4B is a sectional view taken along section line 4-4 ′ of FIG. 4A. It is sectional drawing of the touch screen to which this embodiment is applied. It is sectional drawing of the touch screen to which this embodiment is applied. It is sectional drawing of the touchscreen with which this embodiment is applied. It is the elements on larger scale of the electrode layer in which a copper wire is used by other embodiment concerning this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

First, a first embodiment of the touch electrode device of the present invention will be described.
The configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIGS. 1B to 2E. 2A is a plan view of the touch electrode device 200 according to the embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along the section line 2-2 ′, and only the members correlated with the embodiment are shown in the diagram. To do.
The touch electrode device 200 of this embodiment mainly includes a substrate 21 and at least one electrode layer 22, and the electrode layer 22 is directly provided on the surface (for example, the upper surface) of the substrate 21. According to a feature of the present embodiment, the electrode layer 22 includes a non-transparent conductive material, such as a metal wire, a copper wire, or a silver wire, and the inner diameter of the metal wire is between a few nanometers and a few hundred nanometers. In the embodiment of the present invention, a metal wire is employed.

  The metal wire 24 is fixed in the electrode layer 22 by a plastic material (for example, resin) or a photosensitive material (for example, acrylic). Since the metal wire 24 is very delicate, it cannot be seen with the naked eye, and the translucency of the electrode layer 22 composed of the metal wire 24 becomes extremely high.

  FIG. 2C is an enlarged view of the portion 23 of the electrode layer. According to the figure, the metal lines 24 cross each other and are distributed in a plane and are formed on the electrode layer 22, whereby the conductivity of the electrode layer 22 constituted by the metal lines is substantially equal in each direction of the plane.

  According to another feature of the present invention, a photosensitive material (for example, acrylic) is used for the electrode layer 22 to form an electrode array 26 having an electrode shape required in the manufacturing process of exposure and development. For example, as shown in FIG. 2D, in the embodiment, the appearance of each electrode of the electrode array 26 has the appearance of a rhombus pattern. However, the appearance of the electrode shape of the present invention is not limited to this, and may be designed and formed to have a linear pattern or other polygonal pattern according to actual requirements. Compared to the conventional manufacturing process of an electrode layer formed of indium tin oxide (ITO), the electrode layer 22 of this embodiment directly executes the manufacturing process of exposure and development, simplifying the manufacturing process and reducing the cost. .

  In this preferred embodiment, the substrate 21 is a transparent substrate, and the material thereof may be glass, plastic, or any other transparent material. However, the substrate 21 may include a flexible material, a hard material, or a liquid crystal display module according to actual requirements. Since the metal wire of the non-transparent conductive material is very delicate, the size thereof becomes nanometer class and has further developability, which is combined with the substrate 21 to form the flexible touch electrode device 200. In contrast, a conventional transparent conductive material is indium tin oxide (ITO) or the like. However, since indium tin oxide is easily crushed, it is not easy to form a flexible touch electrode device. Further, the flexibility is far from the flexibility of the conductive layer 22 of the present embodiment (metal-containing wire).

  FIG. 2E shows a changed cross-sectional structure of another touch electrode device 200, further including an insulating layer 27 provided between the substrate 21 and the conductive layer 22. The electrode layer 22 is indirectly provided on the surface of the substrate 21. It is done. In the embodiment, the insulating layer 27 includes a photosensitive material, and is formed on the substrate 21 together with the electrode layer 22 in a necessary shape by an exposure and development manufacturing process. In another embodiment, the insulating layer 27 includes a photosensitive material or a polymer material, and the surface of the insulating layer 27 has viscosity, and is further bonded and fixed to the substrate 21 or the electrode layer 22.

  The touch electrode device 200 of FIGS. 2B and 2E has a single-surface single-layer structure, and a single electrode layer 22 is provided on a single surface of the substrate 21. However, in this embodiment, other structures such as a single-sided two-layer structure or a two-layer structure can also be used.

Next, a second embodiment of the touch electrode device of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 3A is a plan view of a touch electrode device 300 having a single-sided two-layer structure, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along a cross-sectional line 3-3 ′ of FIG. The first electrode layer 22A and the second electrode layer 22B are sequentially provided on the same surface of the substrate 21, and the first electrode layer 22A and the second electrode layer 22B are electrically isolated from each other by the insulating layer 27. In addition, the insulating layer 27 is formed in a necessary shape together with the electrode layer 22 in the manufacturing process of exposure and development, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the shape of the insulating layer 27 is adapted to the actual demand. You may form in the shape different from the shape of 22.

  The first electrode layer 22A and the second electrode layer 22B are all made of a non-transparent conductive material (for example, a metal wire, a copper wire, or a silver wire), or any one of the electrode layers is made of a transparent conductive material (for example, an oxidation material). Indium tin (ITO), zinc aluminum oxide (AZO), titanium oxide (TZO), indium zinc oxide (IZO), indium gallium oxide (GZO), or tin oxide fluoride (FTO)) may be selected and used. good.

Next, a third embodiment of the touch electrode device of the present invention will be described.
4A is a plan view of the touch electrode device 400 having a two-layer structure, and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along a cross-sectional line 4-4 ′ of FIG. 4A. The first electrode layer 22A and the second electrode layer 22B are provided on the opposing surfaces of the substrate 21, respectively. The first electrode layer 22A and the second electrode layer 22B described above are all made of a non-transparent conductive material (for example, a metal wire, a copper wire, or a silver wire), or any one electrode layer is made of a transparent conductive material (for example, an oxidation material). Indium tin (ITO), zinc aluminum oxide (AZO), titanium oxide (TZO), indium zinc oxide (IZO), indium gallium oxide (GZO), or tin oxide fluoride (FTO)) may be selected and used. good.

  Compared to a conventional touch electrode, the touch electrode device 200, the touch electrode device 300, and the touch electrode device 400 of the above-described embodiment use the electrode layer 22 including a non-transparent conductive material, thereby having flexibility. In addition, manufacturing is convenient. The touch electrode device 200, the touch electrode device 300, and the touch electrode device 400 according to the above-described embodiments are applied to various touch-related structures (particularly, a capacitive touch structure) such as a touch panel or a touch display device. Indicates. An example will be described below.

(Variation)
FIG. 5A is a sectional view in which the present embodiment is applied to the touch screen 3. For simplicity of explanation, not all members of the touch screen 3 are shown in the diagram. The touch screen 3 of FIG. 5A is mainly formed by superimposing a display device 320 and a touch panel 310. The display device 320 mainly includes a liquid crystal layer 31 and a color filter (CF) 32, and the touch panel 310 mainly includes a polarizing plate 33 and an electrode layer 22, and the electrode layer 22 is provided on the upper surface of the polarizing plate 33. The polarizing plate 33 is equivalent to the substrate 21 having the structure of FIGS. 2A to 4B. The electrode layer 22 of FIG. 5A may include a single layer or a multilayer electrode layer such as the first electrode layer 22A and the second electrode layer 22B described above. In the application of the present embodiment, the display device 320 may be a flexible display device 320 (for example, a flexible display device), and the flexible touch screen 3 is formed in accordance with the flexible touch panel 310.

  FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view in which the present embodiment is applied to another touch screen 3 ′. The difference from FIG. 5A is that the electrode layer 22 is provided on the lower surface of the polarizing plate 33 in the application of the embodiment of FIG. 5B.

  In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5B, the electrode layer 22 is provided on the upper surface of the color filter (CF) 32, and the color filter (CF) 32 is the substrate 21 having the structure of FIGS. 2A to 4B. Equal to

  FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view in which the present embodiment is applied to the touch panel 5. In the application of this embodiment, the first electrode layer 22A, the insulating layer 27, and the second electrode layer 22B are sequentially provided on the lower surface of the cover lens 51, and the cover lens 51 is formed as shown in FIGS. 2A to 4B. A 2D or 3D outline equivalent to the structure substrate 21 is applied to a 2D or 3D touch display, respectively. In the embodiment, the coated lens 51 includes a flexible material or a hard material, and the surface material of the coated lens has functional characteristics such as wear resistance, scratch resistance, antireflection, glare prevention, and fingerprint prevention after special craft treatment. Have.

  The various touch screens 3, touch screen 3 ′, and touch screen 5 shown in FIGS. 5A to 6 are some applications of the touch electrode device 200, the touch electrode device 300, and the touch electrode device 400 according to the embodiments of the present invention. Only illustrated. Those skilled in the art can apply the electrode layer 22 of the present embodiment to other flexible or non-flexible touch-related structures to replace conventional electrode layers.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the touch electrode device of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a portion 23 of an electrode layer that employs a copper wire in another embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7, the copper wire has a plurality of grids 25, and each grid 25 has a polygonal appearance or a circular appearance. 25 are electrically connected and arranged in an alignment pattern. An electrode is formed by the arrangement of the grids 25 and has an appearance such as a linear pattern, a diamond pattern, or a polygonal pattern. In this embodiment, a copper wire is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the above-described features may be realized by an appropriate material such as a silver wire.

  Next, in another embodiment, the non-transparent conductive material includes an adhesive material, for example, a transparent insulating adhesive such as an optical adhesive, whereby the electrode layer 22 is effectively bonded and fixed to the substrate 21. .

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was explained in full detail with reference to drawings, the concrete structure is not restricted to this embodiment, The design change etc. of the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention are included.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Board | substrate 12 1st electrode 14 2nd electrode 200 Touch electrode apparatus 300 Touch electrode apparatus 400 Touch electrode apparatus 21 Board | substrate 22 Electrode layer 22A 1st electrode layer 22B 2nd electrode layer 23 Part 24 Metal wire 25 Grid 26 Electrode row 27 Insulating layer 3 Touch Screen 3 'Touch Screen 5 Touch Panel 310 Touch Panel 320 Display Device 31 Liquid Crystal Layer 32 Color Filter 33 Polarizing Plate 51 Covered Lens

Claims (11)

A substrate,
It is provided on the surface of the substrate, and comprises at least one electrode layer containing a non-transparent conductive material,
Touch electrode device.   The touch electrode device according to claim 1, further comprising an insulating layer provided between the electrode layer and the substrate.   At least one of the electrode layers includes a first electrode layer and a second electrode layer that are sequentially provided on the same surface of the substrate, and the insulating layer is provided between the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer. The touch electrode device according to claim 2, wherein the touch electrode device is electrically isolated.   The touch electrode device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the electrode layers includes a first electrode layer and a second electrode layer provided on opposite surfaces of the substrate.   The touch electrode device according to claim 1, wherein the non-transparent conductive material includes a plurality of metal wires, copper wires, or silver wires.   The touch electrode device according to claim 1, wherein the non-transparent conductive material further includes a photosensitive material.   The touch electrode device according to claim 1, wherein the electrode layer further includes a plastic material, and the non-transparent conductive material is fixed in the electrode layer.   The touch electrode device according to claim 2, wherein the insulating layer further includes a photosensitive material.   The touch electrode device according to claim 1, wherein the substrate includes a polarizing plate, and the electrode layer is provided on an upper surface or a lower surface of the polarizing plate.   The touch electrode device according to claim 1, wherein the substrate includes a color filter, and the electrode layer is provided on an upper surface of the color filter.   The touch electrode device according to claim 2, wherein the substrate includes a coated lens, and at least one of the electrode layers is provided on a lower surface of the coated lens.

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